Tuesday, November 06, 2012

602. I-T ACT SECTION 66 A- OUR WORRIES AND DEMANDS

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Dear Bloggers,

Hope you might be aware of the arrest of some bloggers in Tamil Nadu on two different cases. Of these, one is on the basis of just an e-mail from one Mr. Karthik Chidambaran, s/o our FM, Mr. Chidambaram to the Puducherry police. The arrested person, Mr. Ravi has twitted on a news from the dailies. His twit was: ‘got reports that karthick chidambaram has amassed more wealth than vadra’. Puducherry police pounced on him at the early hours of the day and arrested him. Does he deserve to be in jail for three years for this big ‘sin’ of this ‘grossly offensive’ twit?

The second case was filed by a playback singer, Chinmaye. Police arrested two bloggers, pin pointed by the singer and then the police were searching for evidences. Though there are nineteen cases pending in their files, police gave priority to this case, since it is from a celebrity!

Due to its importance, coming from a very right person, I quote the statement of Pranesh Prakash, Policy Director of the Bangalore-based Centre for Internet and Society. He says the I-T Article is “overbroad,” “unconstitutional,” and does not satisfy Article 19 (2) of the Constitution which allows for restrictions on freedom of speech and expression.

He further elaborates ’ that there is no equivalent law for any offline communication, whether in verbal or printed format. “If you write a book that annoys or inconveniences me, even deliberately, I have no civil or criminal recourse. But if you send an e-mail message, or post a tweet, you could face three years in jail,” says Mr. Prakash. “That’s higher than the two-year imprisonment for causing death by negligence.”

Statements of Pranesh Prakash expose that around every neck of a blogger there is noose, which can be tightened any time a government machinery wants. Our very fundamental right of free expression has been on the altar of the celebrities to be communed by them any way they like.

With this background, I insist that this is a crucial time to raise our voices for our basic human rights. If things are left out as they are now, any murmur in our blogs could be made into terrorist calls and days of free expression will be totally wiped off. Hence I request you all to post the following in your blog. PLEASE.
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*Even quoting news items on our blogs could be made wrong by this I-T ARTICLE; SECTION 66-A. This article will uproot totally our basic human rights. We very definitely need to protect our rights to express our views without fear. To suit this requirement the I-T ARTICLE should be amended.

*The way the police department plays as a toy in the hands of celebrities raises unknown fear in our minds. We expect and demand that arresting somebody even without proper investigation should never happen in our society.

*The media in such incidents go for sensation and not for truth. Vulgarizing people, even before they are judged by law, is very much like a personal assasination. Media should be more responsible.